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Happy International Women's Day!

International Women's Day 2024 brings with it a powerful and resonant theme: "Inspiring Inclusion." This theme serves as a beacon, guiding us to reflect on the progress made in women's rights and gender equality while also urging us to redouble our efforts in creating a more inclusive world for all.

On the 21st and 22nd of November, Operation Black Vote’s Deputy and Acting Director Ashok Viswanathan visited students in Rochdale Greater Manchester. Ashok worked with students in a range of citizenship classes, from religion, to history, politics, society, health, and education. While students ages 10-15 were the primary group which Ashok spoke with, there were also community ambassadors, support staff, and Rochdale's Head Teacher, Janice Allen.

Peter Babudu, an OBV star alumnus, is standing as the Labour Parliamentary candidate for Camberwell and Peckham constituency.  Peter took part in and graduated from the 2019 OBV Parliamentary Leadership programme.

As of 10 November there stands to be 48 senators for the Democrat Party, 49 senators for the Republican Party, and 3 states still undecided. In this years polls Gen-Z voters showed up in overwhelming numbers for the Democrat party, voting blue more than any other age group. It could be said that the young generation of voters are the reason Democracy will stand in the United States.

Our EUSA intern, Espeana Green writes her first piece for the OBV website in another tumultuous week for UK politics.  Espeana is completing a Psychology Major with Political Science at Boston Univerity, and hails from Bowie, Maryland. Welcome Espeana, you're in for a ride in this exciting and uncertain time for our country.  But it's a good time to learn your political chops, and you join a long line of interns from the EUSA programme that have fantastically contributed through their volunteerism towards OBV.  No pressure!

Jamal Edwards is one of the most critical culture shifters that black Britain and Britain as a whole has witnessed since the turn of the century. In only 31 years, he was able to uplift, inspire, and drive the transition of Black British underground talent into the mainstream - a literal bridge between the channel U era to the growing digital prominence of the culture we see today. It really cannot be overstated how much of a staple SBTV was to the black youth of a whole generation.

• Andy Burnham joined Greater Manchester civic and political leaders for an event which aimed to promote Operation Black Vote's leadership and development programme

While the nationality and borders bill is still at the committee stage in Westminster and Peers debate new amendments and suggestions, the Welsh government has taken a firm stance against it. The bill was rejected in the Welsh parliament on Tuesday evening, with 39 votes against and only 15 in favour.